Putting ‘AI’ in retail: From search to agentic shopping agents

“If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.” – Henry Ford.

Just as the car replaced the horse, AI is setting the stage for a complete reinvention of retail. Mirroring Ford’s insight into technological innovation, today’s retail and e-commerce landscape is being reshaped by technologies that customers themselves might not have imagined. 

The way people search, discover, and purchase products is no longer limited to typing queries into Google or browsing shelves online. Instead, AI is re-sewing the very fabric of the shopping journey – from generative platforms like ChatGPT transforming product discovery, to agentic AI models that could soon shop on behalf of consumers.

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Chatbots are on the search for shoppers

AI is already rewriting one of retail’s most fundamental steps: product search.

A recent Adobe Analytics report found that web traffic to retail sites driven from generative AI-powered chatbots surged by 1,300 percent between July 2024 and February 2025. This is a clear indication that AI is not only augmenting the shopping journey, but actually transforming how people shop.

According to Jayesh Mori, CEO at Experro, traditional search engines like Google are losing ground to emerging AI-driven platforms such as ChatGPT and Perplexity.

“One of the big trends we are seeing is the entire search and product discovery space being completely transformed…Google is losing the search volume, whereas ChatGPT and Perplexity are gaining the volume,” he said. 

“The entire pattern of finding the products is very different, and there will be a time when AI agents will shop on behalf of shoppers.”

For retailers, this represents both a threat and an opportunity. If discovery shifts outside of Google’s walled garden, brands will need to rethink their SEO and digital marketing strategies, optimising instead for conversational and AI-driven discovery engines.

Jayesh Mori, Experro.

AI buzzwords versus business impact

It seems AI is the buzzword of the decade. Retailers across the globe are exploring ways to deploy it, but some risk being swept up in hype rather than strategy.

Rob Scott from Comet CX cautions that while AI is undeniably reshaping retail, the term is often used too loosely. 

“We love AI, but I think it's being thrown around very liberally at the moment, and even things that historically would have just been like a rules based engine are now being called AI.” 

Many legacy tools – from simple recommendation engines to rules-based chat scripts – are now being rebranded as “AI.” But the real opportunity, Scott emphasises, lies in generative AI’s ability to deliver the right message to the right customer at the right time.

For retailers, the challenge will be looking past the hype and focusing on where AI can create meaningful business impact, from revenue growth to customer satisfaction, rather than chasing buzzwords.

Rob Scott, Comet CX

The rise of agentic AI in retail – a personal shopper for customers

Beyond discovery, the next frontier of AI in retail lies in agentic AI, which are systems that don’t just respond to prompts, but proactively act on a customer’s behalf.

The evolution of agentic AI hasn’t been without setbacks, says John Whaling, Head of Sales & Business Development APAC at Royal Cyber. 

“If you wind back five years, the agentic AI type ventures that companies went into weren't entirely successful, but they were great learning lessons.” 

Today, large language models and AI “foundries” give retailers a range of powerful tools to choose from. The challenge lies in selecting the right model for the right use case, ensuring alignment with customer needs and business goals.

At Royal Cyber, proprietary solutions like AIAgentBot and Nora illustrate the possibilities for retail and e-commerce. On the sales side, AIAgentBot removes the need for traditional faceted navigation. Instead of clicking through categories, a shopper can simply tell the bot what they’re looking for, and within a few interactions, it can recommend products, suggest accessories, and even guide them through checkout.

On the service side, Nora provides human-like, real-time conversations to resolve customer issues, blurring the line between digital assistance and human support. Together, these tools demonstrate the growing potential of conversational commerce, where AI not only enhances engagement but also intelligently drives conversions and customer satisfaction.

“The power in the bot now becomes probably the best shopping cart uplift agent you could ever have,” said Whaling. 

John Whaling, Royal Cyber.

Retailers using generative AI to enhance e-commerce brand narrative 

While agentic AI focuses on function, generative AI is redefining form.

Juan Velasquez, co-founder at Shipperfy, points to content generation as one of the clearest wins for his business. From creating product images and branded assets to tailoring marketing copy, AI allows e-commerce teams to scale creative production without sacrificing quality.

For resource-constrained retailers, AI-generated content offers a “perfect use case,” saving time and costs while also enabling rapid experimentation with visuals, formats, and messaging that resonate with different audiences.

Juan Velasquez, Shipperfy.

Rethinking personalisation with AI

Angie O’Rielly highlights that personalisation – a long-time buzzword in retail – is finally reaching its full potential with AI. Beyond surface-level segmentation, AI makes it possible to tailor experiences to lifestyle, location and context. 

“People say, ‘Yeah, we're good at personalisation’. But what does it really mean? You've got a lot of really cool platforms, like LivePerson, that can do really traditional personalisation, but it can be taken to that next level,” said O’Rielly. 

Instead of generic recommendations, AI enables hyper-contextual experiences. For example, a rural shopper might see a product styled in a country setting, while an urban customer would see the same item presented in a city apartment. AI allows brands to dynamically tailor imagery, messaging, and even product bundles based on lifestyle, location, and intent.

Yet, barriers remain. Many businesses hesitate to adopt AI fully, citing cost, complexity, or fear of missteps. To truly benefit, retailers must redefine what personalisation means for their brand and embrace AI confidently as a tool to meet customers where they are, with relevance and authenticity.

Angie O'Rielly, Salsify ANZ

Should you put ‘AI’ in your retail brand?

The retail industry stands at an inflection point. AI is moving from hype to hard results – from transforming search and discovery, to powering agentic shopping assistants, to enabling brand narratives and next-level personalisation.

The lesson for retailers is that AI can be a tool, but it can also act as the new infrastructure for customer experience. Those who embrace it strategically by focusing on business impact rather than hype, will be best placed to build trust, loyalty, and long-term growth.

Just as Henry Ford’s car redefined transportation, AI is redefining retail. To keep pace with the rest of the retail and e-commerce industry, both locally and on the global stage, the question is how fast brands can implement AI responsibly and effectively.

By Jessica Phillips, Senior Social Media and Communications Specialist at AZK Media.

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